Updated September 4, 2026. Quick answer: Colorado has no percentage-based fee schedule for probate attorneys. C.R.S. §15-10-602 entitles both the personal representative and the estate’s lawyer to reasonable compensation, decided by the probate court under a multi-factor test rather than a fixed share of the estate.
The governing rule: C.R.S. section 15-10-602
Colorado, following the Uniform Probate Code, does not set a percentage fee for either the personal representative or the estate’s attorney. Under C.R.S. §15-10-602, Recovery of reasonable compensation and costs, both the fiduciary and the lawyer are entitled only to reasonable compensation for services rendered on behalf of the estate, and the statute is explicit that this entitlement does not limit the court’s inherent authority to determine what is reasonable. Reasonableness is tested against factors including the value of the benefit conferred on the estate, the number of parties involved, efforts made to reduce or narrow disputed issues, and whether the lawyer took actions that unnecessarily expanded issues or delayed the administration.
How the court decides and polices excessive fees
In routine cases, compensation and costs recoverable under §15-10-602 can be paid directly from estate funds without a prior court order, which is how most Colorado probate attorney bills actually get paid. That changes once removal proceedings against a fiduciary begin, at which point the fiduciary is barred from paying any further compensation without a court order, and the statute directs the court to order a refund from anyone who received excessive compensation.
A Colorado-specific wrinkle: outside counsel and the 35-day window
Section 15-10-602 reaches beyond the personal representative’s own retained lawyer. A third party who was not appointed by the court, such as an heir’s separately hired attorney, can also recover compensation from the estate under this section, but only if that person’s efforts produced a court order that actually benefited the estate, and any such claim must be filed within thirty-five days of that order. That is a narrower and more time-sensitive path than the one available to the personal representative’s own counsel.
The rest of the arithmetic: Colorado probate cost.
How the fee models compare across all 51 jurisdictions: probate cost by state, and the national picture on what a probate attorney costs.
Statutory text read at each state’s own legislature or official code publisher. General information, not legal advice; fee statutes change and a court retains the final say on what is reasonable.
The attorney fee above is separate from what the court itself charges just to open the case, see the Colorado probate filing fee.